The consumer price index was unchanged in February, the Labor Department said Thursday.
It was the first time the CPI had not increased since a decline in March 2009, and followed a 0.2% gain in January.
The core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.1%, capping the smallest year-over-year gain since 2004.
Economists had forecast an increase of 0.1% for both the CPI and the core rate, Bloomberg reported.
Energy prices fell 0.5% in February.
The CPI is the government’s broadest gauge of costs for goods and services. Almost 60% of the CPI covers prices consumers pay for services.
If consumer prices are climbing, it could reflect an increase in demand for consumer goods, which increases the demand for trucking services.
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